Dog Names Meaning Smitten

Maria Kalman is an Israeli-born American illustrator, writer, artist, and designer. She has been publishing a variety of children's books since 1985. To date, her picture book, Beloved Dogs is proving to be a genuine best seller. Within the colorfully illustrated book, she shares all of the beloved dogs of her life. However, her entire career would never have happened if not for a pooch named Pete. Every book and drawing she ever undertook was somehow inspired by the canine. 

In an interview with New Yorker Magazine, Maria said about her book Beloved Dogs, "Pete is why this book exists in the first place—he’s what the story’s about, even if he died years ago." 

As a child, Maria went to Belarus where she encountered many unfriendly dogs. The local stories stated that townspeople who did not like Jews had trained the dogs to be vicious towards the people. Maria's parents and friends warned her about the dogs. Her fear of the canines became profoundly ingrained, and while growing up, Maria was very afraid of the animals. 

Maria's outlook on dogs eventually changed, as she states, "When my husband, Tibor, got sick with terminal cancer years ago, and someone suggested a dog—for the kids—I was just like, “No way, that’s not going to happen.” But somehow, that idea became a possibility. How do you find yourself one minute saying no, and the next minute you’re bringing a dog home? Which is exactly what happened." The dog she brought home was a small scruffy mutt named Pete. 

Pete was a funny looking dog who would jump around on all four feet. Maria looked at him as a cartoon character and eventually started falling in love with the pooch. 

"I became the person who took care of him. He was this extraordinary, kind, patient, loving, consoling, new person in my life, and we became inseparable. It became this love story that I never would have dreamt in a million years. And he was very funny—we had a lot of funny times, and I drew him many times. He was on the cover of The New Yorker—that was something that I still like to boast about. So with Pete my eyes were opened, as was my heart," Maria recounts. She would dress him in a variety of hats and outfits. The dog never objected and would happily pose for her. He was an extremely patient dog. 

Maria became smitten with Pete. She stated, "Well, once in a while my son would bring up the issue of how much I loved the dog versus how much I loved the kids. I think that’s common in families, isn’t it? I like to tell myself that’s very common, clearly. So there was a little bit of sibling rivalry going on, just a tad. Let’s just say we all hope for the best."

So Pete became her inspiration, her muse, and her beloved canine friend.